Texas Sizzle

Texas Sizzle is a casual American-style steakhouse and grill at 161 Crown Street in the Wollongong CBD, near the Crown Street Mall, and dogs are welcome at the outdoor footpath tables. For a hearty Texan dinner with the dog stretched out beside your chair, it is one of the easier CBD options.

The dog setup

Dogs join you at the umbrella-shaded footpath tables out front on Crown Street, not in the indoor dining room. Keep your dog on a leash and close to the table. The venue is popular and the kitchen runs late on weekends, so call ahead to make sure an outside table is free, and bring your own water bowl since one is not guaranteed.

The food

The kitchen is known for smoky Texas BBQ pork ribs, steak cuts, loaded schnitzels and a Philly cheese steak that locals order by name, with Buffalo and smoky BBQ wings by the half kilo and a side line of momo dumplings. There is a full bar of wines, spirits and cocktails, plus kids' menu options, and the room stays lively and casual into the evening.

Getting there and hours

The restaurant sits in the central Chambers building on Crown Street near the mall. Street parking runs along Crown Street and the side streets, council car parks are nearby, and mall-area parking is free on weekends. Doors open from 11am most days, closing around 9:30pm to 10:30pm depending on the night.

Close by with the dogs

The Crown Street Mall surrounds and the coastal paths near Flagstaff Point make an easy on-lead walk before or after dinner. For proper off-lead time, Coniston Dog Beach is a short drive south, a council green zone where dogs run free on the sand at any hour. For other meals in the precinct, Dagwood does Asian fusion nearby and Lee and Me covers the brunch end of town.

The dog-friendly pubs in NSW list and the Wollongong guide cover the rest.

Pepsi: guarded a full rack of ribs with the focus of a career professional and accepted a single rib end as severance